What We Think: Principals have full authority on discipline

Last week, Superintendent of Schools Pat Cooper told principals of Lafayette Parish schools it is time for them to take back control of their schools.

Cooper issued a letter to that effect after teachers and principals began to report an increase in discipline problems in schools.

Many principals have become reluctant to remove disruptive students from their school, Cooper said, because of a misunderstanding over the district's "discipline matrix." It's well known in the district that one of Cooper's priorities is to keep students in school - but not at the cost of discipline in the classroom, Cooper told The Daily Advertiser Friday.

We find it difficult to understand how this misunderstanding over something so important and so fundamental could have happened.

Cooper said he didn't know, but is willing to take the responsibility for perhaps not having communicated his wishes clearly enough.

To be sure, Cooper attended a Friday principal's meeting that lasted almost all day.

He said he made it clear that school principals have full authority to handle discipline problems.

And that is as it should be.

Cooper said Friday evening that he never intended for teachers or principals to put up with "inappropriate behavior." But things appear to have begun to get out of hand.

At an emotional Wednesday evening Lafayette Parish School Board meeting, teachers and principals spoke of problems in the school system, including unchecked behavior problems among some students.

A student teacher stood and told of students spouting profanities at faculty members. Some teachers have complained of students putting their hands on faculty members.

This is clearly unacceptable behavior and teachers should not have to put up with it. It's bad for them and for the students who are there to learn.

And they don't have to, Cooper said. There are two avenues for removing students from the classroom if all else has failed.

Ideally, they should be referred to the N.P. Moss Preparatory Academy, the district's school for students with behavior problems. But if there is no room for them, Cooper said, they may be sent home through suspension.

The confusion among principals and teachers came about in part because of Cooper's often stated goal of keeping more students in school to help reverse the parish's 30 percent dropout rate.

"We're not in the business of throwing kids away," he said.

Health and wellness teams are in place to try help students improve their behavior so they can stay in the school system.

But at the same time, Cooper said, some principals were "keeping some kids too long."

The thing to remember, Cooper said, is that the goal of reducing the dropout rate can't be accomplished overnight. It is a process that will take about six years to bring the dropout rate down to 5 or 6 percent.

In the meantime, he said, as many as 500 or 600 of the parish's 31,000 students could be removed from the classroom, if necessary.

We agree with Cooper that it is important that everyone work together to improve parish schools. And that requires educators within the system to speak up when something needs to be fixed.

It is up to Cooper and his staff to foster an atmosphere of openness that encourages teachers in the field to communicate their concerns freely, without worry of backlash.

That is his intent, Cooper said.

It's easy to get discouraged these days, when school districts face funding cuts, controversial new procedures for evaluating teachers, and serious discipline problems among some of the students.

But Cooper, who draws on his experience in other school systems, believes it's possible to save most students and keep Lafayette Parish schools on track.

Bumps in the road should be expected along the way.

We hope Cooper and the parish's teachers and administrators have been successful in navigating around this one and will be able to avoid the ones that may lie ahead.

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What We Think: Principals have full authority on discipline

Last week, Superintendent of Schools Pat Cooper told principals of Lafayette Parish schools it is time for them to take back control of their schools.Cooper issued a letter to that effect after

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